Dark Horses That Could Make Noise During the 2026 CFB Season
With about three months left before the 2026 college football season starts, fans still have time to brag that this will be their year and that the new transfer class will turn things around. Yet the truth is, except for the top teams, not many have a real shot at competing, much less making a deep run. Still, every year, there are one or two teams that surprise everyone. They show the committee that they deserve a chance.
One of these teams that could’ve made it to the playoffs last year if it wasn’t for a late-season collapse is Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets brought in 19 players from the transfer portal, including some who could be highly impactful this season. Starting out on offense, bringing in Alberto Mendoza as their quarterback was a great move. Despite not seeing much playing time at Indiana, he was developed by the same coaches who were responsible for his brothers’ success, which included a Heisman Trophy and a National Championship. Unlike Fernando, Alberto is much more mobile on the ground, and like former Georgia Tech QB Haynes King, we can expect to see a lot of designed runs in the playbook this fall. Moving over to the actual, the Yellow Jackets were able to bring in former Michigan running back Justice Haynes, who was a key factor in the Wolverines’ run-heavy offense last year. It's possible to expect him to have a bit of a lesser role with Mendoza being a dual-threat QB, but if they’re on the goal line, it's pretty clear who’s getting the ball. Between these two offensive weapons joining the team on top of a good portion of the offensive line returning, we can see a newfound form of Georgia Tech’s offense that can certainly raise some eyebrows in the measly ACC this year.
Another team that can definitely fly under people’s radars and hails from the Big 12 is the Utah Utes. After 21 long years with Kyle Whittingham under the helm, it was time for a change, as Whittingham took his talents to Ann Arbor. Instead of going with an outsider, Utah decided to promote defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley to head coach. He’s already done a good job at retaining Devon Dampier, Wayshawn Parker, and Byrd Ficklin for another season. Scalley also did a good job at keeping most of his defensive coaching staff, which is huge considering they did lose some, such as Smith Snowden, and Tao Johnson. Utah also scooped up 16 players via the transfer portal. Despite not too many big names, they did rope in wide receivers Kyri Shoels from San Jose St and Braden Pegan from Utah St, both of whom are rated four stars. On top of the coaching change and everything else, Utah does have a very favorable schedule with its two toughest games against Houston and BYU both being played at Rice-Eccles. As for the rest of their schedule, it's mostly the bottom of the barrel in the Big 12, with West Virginia, Colorado, and Kansas set to play them.
